Exploring speech, language, feeding and parenthood

The Clutterless Christmas

Christmas is coming! I LOVE Christmas! Who doesn’t? Am I right? I start Christmas shopping mid September. We begin threatening with Santa as soon as the leaves begin to change. Because I like to draw it out as long as possible. It’s how I roll.

Shopping is not hard for me. Wrapping is a piece of cake. Decorating, no problem. But what really gets me is this one big question: What is on your family’s Christmas list? Eek. So the boys have a few items they are dying for (think Woody doll, playmobile stables, and cowboy boots – anyone see a theme here) But in reality, we need nothing. And space is limited. So the theme for us this year is “Consumable.” Who doesn’t want consumable gifts? They are enjoyed, but then they are gone. No space commitment necessary.

And to help you also avoid more clutter, I am going to share this magical list with you! Are you ready? Here is comes!

Let’s start out with the kiddos….

BLOOMBOX. Well, this one isn’t on Hank and Gus’s list, because they have a lifetime subscription to Bloombox already. But is should be on yours. You get a box full of toys and activities…play with it for a month….box is back up, and use the prepaid shipping label to return it. Easy as 1.2.3. And educational too! Put a subscription to this on your kiddos list immediately! Read more at bloomandlearn.com

Camp. Hank got a week of camp for his birthday in September – and he will be attending next July. He can barely wait. My parents gave it to him. He goes to camp in the morning and then my mom picks him up and he gets to stay with my parents for the week. It is a super special week for kids and grandparents…and also for parents who got to ship off a kid. Hank will be attending Camp Foster in Okoboji, IA. Check out summer camps near you!

Membership Passes. Zoo and Museum memberships are gifts that last all year round! And, if your local zoo is anything like ours, you get a discount at any other zoo you visit during your membership year!

Classes or punch cards. South Dakota winters are long! Bring on the music classes, gymnastic punch cards, and indoor play center passes! These are not just a gift of fun, but also a gift of my sanity!

Experiences. I am not saying things like “I will take you to the beach” or “We are going on a hot air balloon.” I am saying, give my kid play dough and spend an afternoon play diner with him while he makes green burgers and purple eggs. Or give them a sled and spend a Saturday on the hill behind your house with them.

Let’s move onto John. Aren’t men hard to shop for? Well, John is. Because if he needs something, he just goes on out and buys it. Super annoying. Put it on a list and let me buy it for you. Good grief. Anyways, here is the consumable list for men…

Tickets. He has specifically asked for tickets to the PBR Rodeo that will be in town this Spring. (Now do you understand my children’s Christmas list?) But really, any tickets would do. Concerts, musicals, movies. Tickets.

Meat stuff. Yeah, you read that right. Meat, seasoning, sauces. He gets really into smoking and grilling. A meat gift basket is what this guy dreams of.

School of Sock. John loves great socks. The School of Sock company has a subscription service that sends you socks each month. They are great quality and they are all fantastic. And what guy doesn’t need another great pair of dress socks?

Dark liquor. Yeah. My husband actually put that on his Christmas list. Because clear liquor is for women on diets. My husband did not say that, Ron Swanson did. He would not typically treat himself to a nice bourbon or scotch. So on the Christmas list it goes.

Birchboxman. This is not what he put on his list. I did. Because Suave is not acceptable. He knows this. And what better way for him to realize how many amazing products are out there than by getting a box of fantastic samples every month?

And then….most importantly, there is my list. I am kidding. If I didn’t get anything for Christmas, I would be just fine. I honest to God have every single thing I have ever wanted. And then some.

But…if someone insists on getting me a gift, this is what I want….

Rose wine. This is what I want. All. Day. Long.

Coffee. Because as Hank once told my father in law, “My mom drinks wine and coffee. That is all.” And he is kind of right.

Fab Fit Fun Box. Because all of those Facebook video ads have worked their magic, and now I want one. And I love getting mail.

Food. Not a can of corn. But fun and delicious foods. I LOVE Wildtree freezer meal kits. Without them my family would starve. Or amazing cake and cookie mixes from LM Bakery. The boys and I are loving their cookie dough…like a lot.

Bath and beauty products. Because like I said earlier, Suave is no good. I want Zum lotions and bath bombs. Because as fabulous as I would love to be…these extras aren’t things I love to splurge on. I enjoy them more wrapped up and under the tree.

What is on your lists? What are your kids and significant others wishing for? Tell me what I should be adding to our lists!

Another idea for consumables is craft supplies that let their imagination run wild! One year my 5-year-old son got 1000 popsicle sticks, a bag of pom poms, foam shape stickers, hundreds of googly eyes, and rolls of tape refills. From his Aunt and Uncle he got what looked a lot like their recycling tub contents (TP tubes, plastic containers, cereal boxes, empty spools from fishing line). He was thrilled! Of course, he also got stackable sterilite containers to house all this because otherwise the clutterless part of Christmas turns into the craft-crap-everywhere Christmas. He is STILL using all those supplies and has made probably a hundred projects from those materials. Diaramas, robots, cardboard doll houses for his sister, marble runs, popsicle stick puppets, lots of guns and swords (of course).

Last year we gave the boys tickets to Wild Kratts Live and it was something to look forward to that Spring–an afternoon with mom and dad without little sis and a trip to Chuck E Cheese to boot.

This year we are moving so they are getting things like clocks, radio/CD players and storage cubes.